CHAPTER SIX: IN THE KNOW
True to his word, Billy wasn't long. I heard a van speeding down the road, along with with three other heartbeats. But the sounds of footfalls didn't match.
I could hear panting. Like a big dog. Oh! I remembered what Jake said about the treaty and the tribe. Well, if Vampires existed, why can't werewolves?
My wonder quickly turned to worry. They'd smell me, like I could smell them now. They'd react first, ask questions later. I needed to be somewhere they wouldn't attack.
I raced to the living room, startling Charlie. I knelt infront of him, careful not to touch him. I would be ice cold now, I needed to do things at his pace.
"Dad, Billy is just outside but he has brought protection." i paused, reading his face. Guessing exactly what he was going to say, i answered his question before he asked it. "Consider it tribal protection, for Billy against creatures such as me." I said glumly, dropping my head.
"Bella. Bella, look at me." Charlie put his hand hesitantly under my chin. I could feel him brace against the temperature and texture of my skin, but he held firm. "I don't know what you've turned into but you are still you. I will not let anyone hurt you or try to tell me otherwise. I know you. You're my baby girl, even with shattered bones, I'll protect you." He said the last sentence with the most emotion I'd ever heard from him. I nodded.
"Then lets us face them together." I stood behind the sofa, to Charlies right. Even though it hurt him to do it, he gestured for my hand and held it firm against his shoulder. We heard the door open, a wheelchair roll in, looking at Billy as if he was a gun held to our heads.
~
"Billy." Charlie nodded in greeting to the man who sat before us. Billy was a broad shouldered, deep russet skinned man with long black hair past his shouldered. The power of a Tribal Elder poured off of him, the wheelchair did not take away from the authority that emanated from him lile an aura.
I heard his heart quicken as he caught sight of me. He was scared and he knew what I was. Before he had a chance to call for the wolves outside, Charlie shouted.
"BILLY! Before you call for whatever protection you've got out there, i want you to stop and hear us out. Hear my Bella out." My still heart swelled with love for my Dad. He didn't know what he had been dragged into but he always had my corner.
"There is nothing to hear Charlie. She has become a Cold One of our legends! The Cold Ones my tribe has been charged to destroy for as far back as our tribe can remember. She is fresh qnd all the stronger for it! Nothing of your daughter remains, she must be destroyed." he exclaimed, almost running out of breath.
As immature as it was, as much as the situation did not call for this type of behaviour, I audibly tutted and rolled my eyes.
"Billy, it is me. I am still me. The exterior maybe a little different but underneath, I am the same Bella I was before my transformation. I need you to give me a chance to explain what has happened. But before I do," I paused to take a deep breath in. I needed to desensitise myself to the smell of humans, fast." I swear to you that whilst I may not be part of the Cullen coven, i do adhere to their.. Vegetarian..lifestyle choices. You, Charlie and the rest of Forks are safe from me. Just, please give me a chance." I was practically begging by the end of it. If he didn't want hear me out, I was done for.
Billy sat there for several long minutes. Finally, he signed wheeling himself back to the door.
"Okay, I will hear you. But I need to bring Sam Uley in. He is the pack leader and enforces the treaty." He didn't look convinced, but thankfully, he was giving me a chance.
"Uh, Billy, do you have a doc on the Reservation thats, uh, in the loop, so to speak?" I hesitantly asked. If they did, they'd be here by the time we got to explaining Charlies injuries.
"Uh, yeah." Billy looked at Charlie for a long time, sighed again but thankfully, didn't ask anymore questions. "I'll call him now, get him to come over." he called over his shoulder as he wheeled himself to the front door.
I slumped against the back of the sofa and exhaled heavily. The hard part was over. Now just to explain what the hell happened.
"Hey Dad. Uhm," I bit my bottom lip. This is gonna be hard for him. "So, whilst we wait for Billy and Sam to arrange everything, I'll need to give you a quick run down. It's going to be like a crash course on the new me so to speak. Do you think you can handle the info overload?" I hated the idea of putting him through anything else, but I wanted him to hear it from me.
"Bella, we've been through alot in the past 4 days, every moment of which I can remember. I feel like I've been left out of the loop of something big, so I'd like to be brought up to speed."
I studied his face for a heartbeat. Decided the band aid approach was my only option.
"Dad, I'm a Vampire."